The Election Commission has set the campaign spending cap at Rs 109 per registered voter for the Presidential Election 2024, totaling Rs 1.86 billion.
The Election Commission has set the campaign spending cap at Rs 109 per registered voter for the Presidential Election 2024, totaling Rs 1.86 billion per candidate. This decision was made following a meeting with political parties, independent groups, and candidates.
The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) has proposed a spending limit of Rs 300 per voter, amounting to approximately Rs 5.13 billion, while the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) and incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe have suggested a limit of Rs 250 per voter, resulting in an estimated expenditure of Rs 4.275 billion. The National People's Power (NPP) has suggested Rs 200 per voter, totalling Rs 3.42 billion.
However, presidential candidates Janaka Ratnayake and Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe have proposed a more conservative spending limit of Rs 20 per voter, resulting in a budget of Rs 342 million.
The Regulation of Election Expenditure Act, which was passed in Parliament on January 19, 2023, aims to regulate candidate spending in all elections. The Act requires the Election Commission to set an amount of money, with input from political parties, independent groups, and candidates, and publish it in the Gazette.
According to the Act, the spending limit will be calculated by multiplying the total number of registered voters in the electoral districts by the amount fixed for the election.
